Vattana baaji

This is a Goan gravy, which goes well with pav or chapatti. Goans call this dish as Feijoada. Last week my sister reminded me about this recipe. We used to have it with pav at my grandfather’s hotel in Panjim.

Ingredients:

1 cup vattana or dry peas (soaked overnight)
1 cup grated coconut
5-6 dry red chillies
2 onions, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon ginger, julienned
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
A small piece of cinnamon
3-4 cloves
1/2 teaspoon mace (outer cover of nutmeg)
1 teaspoon chopped coriander leaves
1 teaspoon oil
Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the vattana overnight and cook in a pressure cooker along with half the chopped onions. Fry the dry red chillies with a few drops of oil and keep aside. Now fry the coriander seeds, cinnamon, cloves, and mace with little oil. Grind the grated coconut, dry red chillies, coriander seeds, cloves, cinnamon, and mace to a fine paste. Heat oil in a wok and fry the rest of the chopped onions. Add the ginger and tomatoes and fry for 2 minutes. Now add the ground masala and the cooked vattana and salt and bring it to a boil. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with pav or chapattis.

Colocasia leaf curry or alavathi

Ingredients:

A bunch of colocasia leaves along with the stem

1 cup shredded coconut

5-6 red chillies

1 lemon-sized tamarind ball

2-3 slit green chillies

1-inch piece julienned ginger

2 teaspoon oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Salt to taste

Method:

Clean and cut the colocasia leaves along with the stem. Add a cup of water and the slit green chillies and julienned ginger and cook it in the pressure cooker until it is cooked to a soft consistency.

To give the curry a tangy flavor, in Karwar and Mangalore, we add bimbul or ambado. (Sorry I do not know the English name for these vegetables). Since it is not easily available in Mumbai, I use the tamarind. Now grind the shredded coconut, red chillies, and the tamarind to a paste.

Remove the colocasia leaves from the cooker and add the ground masala and salt and bring it to a boil. Heat oil in a saucepan and add the mustard seeds. Once they start to crackle, season the curry or alavathi with it.

I simply love this dish. When the colocasia leaves are cooked in the coconut gravy, it gives a distinct aroma. Hope you will like this recipe.

Chana Ghashi (Chickpeas with tender jackfruit)

Since my mother is visiting me and it is Thursday today, I have made this chana ghashi. (She does not eat onions and garlic on Thursdays, only satvik food). This is one popular Konkani dish, which is served in important functions and on festival days.

Ingredients:

1 cup of chickpeas

1/2 kg of tender jackfruit

1 cup shredded coconut

4-5 red chillies

1 small ball of tamarind

1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

2 sprigs of curry leaves

A pinch of asafetida

1 teaspoon oil

Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the chana or chickpeas overnight. Cut the tender jackfruit into small pieces (This is a sticky job. You can get it cut by the vendor to make your job easy). Now cook the chickpeas and tender jackfruit in pressure cooker until it becomes soft. Fry the fenugreek seeds in a little oil and keep aside. Grind the shredded coconut, red chillies, fenugreek seeds, and tamarind to form a thick masala. Mix the chickpeas and jackfruit, ground masala, salt, and turmeric powder and bring it to a boil. Heat oil in a small pan. When it is hot add the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds crackle, add curry leaves and asafetida. Season the chana ghashi and serve hot with rice and upkari.

Avale kadi

This is another Konkani recipe, which we have almost forgotten. Avale is gooseberry. This is a spicy randai or curry made with gooseberry, coconut, red chillies and other spices.

Ingredients:

3-4 avale or gooseberry
1 cup grated coconut
6-8 red chillies
1/2 teaspoon jeera (cumin seeds)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4-5 garlic for seasoning
1 teaspoon oil

Method:

Cook the gooseberries in the pressure cooker and deseed it. Fry the red chillies, jeera and black pepper in little oil and then grind it to a fine paste with the grated coconut. Now add the gooseberries and grind it to form the gravy consistency. Bring it to boil. Heat the oil in a pan and add the crushed garlic. Once the garlic gets golden brown, add it to the kadi. You may serve this kadi with rice.